


Secrets of the Past

by Verity_Belysandre



Category: Changeling (Visual Novel)
Genre: F/M, Not Canon Compliant, Tags May Change, bit of a slow start
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-28
Updated: 2019-04-06
Packaged: 2019-12-25 14:22:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 13,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18263114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Verity_Belysandre/pseuds/Verity_Belysandre
Summary: Beatrice's family has moved to Pine Hollow. Which would be wonderful, if it wasn't for the fact her past still has a few surprises for her. As if trying to adjust to a new place, new school, and new people wasn't enough.





	1. The Move

**Author's Note:**

> This story is basically how my OC Beatrice (Bea for short) ends up with Corvin. It's still a work in progress, but I figured I'd post what I've done so far. I'll be jumping between his perspective and hers occasionally, but I'll mark who it is in the title. I apologize in advance if anyone seems out of character. For reference, Bea's family just so happened to move about a week after Nora's does. This first chapter is in Bea's perspective.

Bea restlessly shifts in her seat, looking out the passenger window. All she can see is trees, lots of trees. Fall has only just begun, but you wouldn’t know it looking outside. Most of the leaves have already changed colors, the exception being a few evergreen trees sprinkled here and there. It’s pretty much the same thing she’s seen for the last three hours and she’s tired of it.

At this point, she's ready to be there already. Long periods of time in a car make her uneasy. Once upon a time, long car trips didn’t faze her. Now, she hates being in a car for a long length of time. Unfortunately Pine Hollow is almost twenty hours away from where they previously lived. She doesn’t know who is more impatient, her or her young nephew.

Thankfully Braden is still asleep. For now anyway. Once he wakes up, then starts the incessant questioning. Are they there yet? How much longer? What state are they in? She loves her nephew and usually finds his inquisitive nature endearing. At this point though, his persistent questioning is eroding what little patience she has left. Not that she blames him. He’s constantly active, always moving around or asking questions. Unfortunately, long hours in a car aren’t conducive to physical activity and he seems to think if he asks enough times, the answer will miraculously change.

According to Elle, they have at least another three hours on the road. Those three hours can’t pass quickly enough in Bea’s opinion. Of course, once they arrive at their new home, they will start unpacking immediately. A trailer had been packed and sent ahead. Supposedly it will be there by the time they arrive. All their furniture and most of their belongings are in the trailer since their car wasn’t big enough to hold more than a few boxes. Not that they own much clutter given their apartment had barely been big enough for three of them.

Hence the move. While Bea understands why, she’s still apprehensive. So much change at once has never worked out well for her. There’s a good chance she’ll be worse off than she was in the city. It had taken her forever to settle somewhat comfortably in the city. How long will it take for her to do so in Pine Hollow?

“You’re awfully quiet, even for you. Everything okay?” Elle worriedly asks from the driver seat. Normally Bea welcomes the distraction, but she really doesn’t feel much like talking. There’s not much to say that hasn’t already been said and a lot she has no intention of talking about. At least not right now, if ever.

“I’m just ready to be there already, that’s all,” Bea tiredly replies, still looking out the window. While it’s true, it’s not the only reason. She doesn’t really want to get into the other reason. It’s in the past and it should stay there. She wishes it would stay there.

“Is that so?” Elle replies, clearly unconvinced. Not surprising. If anyone sees through Bea, it’s her older sister. “Well, we should be there in a few hours.”

Bea softly hums in response. Perhaps it would be better to talk about something rather than letting the silence build up. After brief consideration, she finds a safe topic. They both can use the distraction from old thoughts and problems. “Tell me about our new house. You didn’t say much about it.”

“I think you’ll like it. It’s way bigger than the apartment. You even get your own room. And no fighting over the bathroom either; the house has two bathrooms.” Elle answers. Her voice still holds faint traces of concern, but Bea doesn’t think she can fully ease her older sister’s worry. The truth would upset Elle more and Bea tries to avoid lying as much as she can.

“Like we ever fought over the bathroom anyway.” Bea snorts, looking over at her sister. “I’m surprised you found a house so fast. With the way you were talking, I thought it would take you longer.”

“We got lucky. Not only is it a good size for us, it has a newly renovated kitchen. New appliances, lots of cabinets, plenty of counter space, lots of natural light, it even has a pantry! I can try so many new recipes…” A dreamy sigh escapes Elle. Anything to do with cooking almost always distracts her, especially when it comes to making new recipes.

“You’re talking about that kitchen like some girls talk about cute boys. It’s kind of disturbing.” Bea teases, well aware her sister has a legitimate reason to be happy. She is really happy for her sister, despite her teasing. It’s just fun to rib Elle sometimes.

Their old apartment had a kitchen, but it had been ridiculously tiny. For someone who loved to cook, it was horrible. Any meal requiring much preparation had been out of the question. It wasn’t even big enough for more than one person at the time.

“Well, I do love a decent kitchen, you know. It’s not far off.” Elle grins, unashamed.

“You’re so weird.” Bea laughs. A noise from the backseat catches their attention. It seems Braden has finally decided to wake up.

“Are we there yet?” He mumbles, barely audible. Of course that would be the first question out of his mouth. Bea reminds herself they only have three more hours as she looks towards the backseat.

Braden groggily rubs his eyes, still not quite fully awake yet. She fondly smiles at him, her earlier irritation bleeding away somewhat. It’s hard to stay mad at him when she can’t really fault him for his reactions. This is the longest he’s ever been in a car and hopefully it’ll be a long time before he is again.

“Sorry, bud. We have a few more hours left.” Elle apologetically answers. Braden had enough of being in a car several hours in. No amount of distraction has helped either.

A disgruntled noise escapes Braden. As expected, he’s not happy with that answer. His little mouth forms a pout, his dark brown eyes stare miserably into his aunt’s eyes.

“I know, I’m ready to be there too. Are you hungry?” Bea starts to dig through the bag of snacks at her feet. She has a feeling the next few hours are going to be long ones.

* * *

 

It’s obvious when they have arrived in Pine Hollow. Elle’s mood brightens and she becomes much more chipper. Bea wishes she could feel the same.

Something about Pine Hollow makes her uncomfortable, but she’s not exactly sure why. She briefly wonders if she’s unused to seeing so much nature, but she immediately dismisses the notion. It’s unlikely, some of her best memories with Elle are from when they would go to the nearby parks. So why does Pine Hollow make her uneasy?

“We’re almost there. Just another ten minutes!” Elle excitedly exclaims. Bea plasters a smile on her face, trying her best to match her sister’s enthusiasm. Luckily she doesn’t have to.

“Really?!” Braden squirms in his car seat, eagerly anticipating his freedom. He settles for looking out the window, the scenery different from the last few hours. Now they’re driving through the main part of Pine Hollow, which is lined with all types of colorful storefronts…and other things.

Bea turns to her sister, unwilling to acknowledge the inhuman beings. She knows better than to draw attention to them. Elle can’t see them anyways, almost totally unaware of their presence. Braden can see some of them, but Bea has gently encouraged him to ignore them. Thankfully he has listened to her. She was initially afraid he would try to befriend them or play with them, but her fear was misplaced.

“So is Ash going to be there?” Bea asks, focusing on her sister.

“Of course she is. She promised to help me unpack.” Elle shoots Bea a smile before looking back at the road. “You’ll be see a lot more of her, since she lives here too. You’ll probably meet several people that I knew when I grew up here.”

Bea isn’t surprised. Unlike her, Elle is a social butterfly and has kept in contact with several old friends. Both of them were born in Pine Hollow, but Bea moved in with Elle when she was around ten years old. Their mother homeschooled her, so she didn’t have many friends. Her move to the city was so abrupt and things were so hectic she never tried to keep in contact. She doubts anyone will even remember her and she’s fine with it.

She’s far more concerned about Pine Hollow’s supernatural population and what it means for her.

The vibrant shades of gold, red, and orange leaves adorning the trees creates a pretty backdrop for the wooden bridge the car crosses over. As peaceful as the scenery is, it does little to settle Bea’s nerves. Memories of her mother and everything she taught Bea before she died surface once again, and she wonders if she can keep acting like the paranormal doesn’t exist.


	2. Bea's Park Misadventure

By late Sunday afternoon, all the boxes have been unpacked. It’s not long before Elle firmly shoos them out of the house. “There’s a park down the road, take Braden out there. Some fresh air will do you some good. Besides, it won’t be too long before it’s too cold to enjoy a day at the park.”

Bea knows better than to argue, so she walks with Braden in the direction her sister indicated. She leads her nephew down a nicely wooded path sheltered within the trees. Most of the trees have most of their autumn leaves, all the different colors painting a beautiful scene.

The parks in the city had trees and wildlife, but it’s nothing compared to her new home. Something about it feels a bit wilder, perhaps because it feels like the neighborhood is nestled into the woods. It feels as if the forest would reclaim the man-made houses if given the chance, like it has a life of its own.

After a few minutes, Bea realizes Braden hasn’t said anything. He’s probably out of sorts from last night’s nightmare. She doesn’t know exactly what his nightmare was about, only that it made him wake her up a little after midnight. She does know it left him terrified and she caved when he wanted to sleep in her bed. It is an old habit from when they shared a room, so it was easier to turn to her for comfort. Whatever he dreamed about was bad enough to stay with him almost all day.

Normally she has to remind him to stay within her sight, the little boy constantly running off to investigate one thing or another. He rarely explores quietly, full of questions and commentary Bea does her best to respond to. Sometimes she has to chase him down, her nephew too distracted to hear her warnings. For one little boy, he can get into a lot of trouble.

The quiet, anxious little boy clinging to her is a far cry from her normally rambunctious, precocious nephew. Part of her wonders if he’s going to have more nightmares. Could it be an indication of something else besides having to adjust to a new home?

She doesn’t have much time to fret as the park Elle was talking about comes into view.

It’s a decent sized park. A large wooden playset sits in the middle of a wide open area. It has a few slides, monkey bars, a rock wall, and a swing set. A few benches are sprinkled about for people to sit in. Just like the rest of the area, the park is surrounded by trees.

And there’s no one else there. Bea wonders if it’s because of the weather or if it means there’s not many young children in the neighborhood. She has a hard time believing it’s the weather. While it’s not exactly warm, it’s not cool enough to chase everyone indoors. Either way, it looks like it’s up to her to encourage her nephew to play.

Kneeling, Bea tugs him to her. She smooths his dark brown hair as she speaks. “Braden, why don’t you go play?”

His chocolate brown eyes mournfully gaze into her blue-gray ones. Looking away, he shakes his head. Bea stifles a sigh. So he’s going to be difficult, is he? Good thing she has an idea on how to change his mind.

“I’ll make you a deal. You go play for a little bit, I’ll make those cookies you liked so much last time.” Bea bargains, reasonably sure he’ll cave. The cookies aren’t particularly hard to make, but she’s only made them once before. She likes to experiment with other recipes, so she rarely repeats a recipe.

With a small frown, Braden considers her offer. His little face scrunches up, clearly weighing his options. Bea doesn’t have to wait long. “Double chocolate peanut butter cookies?”

“Did you want something different? Remember, I’ll only make something if you go play for a bit.” The corners of her lips twitch briefly into a smile. If he was unwilling, he definitely would have said no. Now it’s a matter of finding the right carrot. Normally she would just leave him be, but he needs to forget about his nightmare. At least for a bit.

Braden pouts at her. “I don’t wanna play by myself.”

“We could play hide and seek or a game of tag.” Bea offers. It wouldn’t be the first time and probably wouldn’t be the last. Even though Braden is used to amusing himself, he sometimes wants to play with someone else. If he can’t find another kid to play with, he will pester his mother or aunt to play with him.

Braden briefly considers his options. Decision made, he quickly taps on his aunt’s shoulders. “Tag! You’re it!”

As he runs away, Bea slowly stands up. She had a feeling he would choose tag. Braden loves running around. After giving him a brief head start, she jogs after him. After a bit of a chase, she catches up and ruffles Braden’s hair. “Tag!”

Her nephew squeals, one of his hands reaching towards her. Bea dances out of his reach easily, not ready to be ‘it’ again. After all, she’s trying to distract him.

She runs away, easily staying within sight of the little boy while evading his attempts to tag her. Using skills honed from years of practice, she slows down occasionally and leaves herself open to be tagged only to evade it at the last moment. Over the years she has become adept at reading people and knowing when to react. And in some cases, when to disappear.

“No fair!” Braden cries, his aunt slipping out of his reach once again. Time to let him catch her, if he’s getting frustrated.

Bea slips behind a nearby tree, knowing he’ll find her easily. She wasn’t so far ahead of him he wouldn’t see her duck out of sight. It doesn’t take long for him to catch up.

“Ha!” Braden smacks her leg, laughing as he runs back towards the playground.

Bea laughs as she trots after him, feeling much lighter than she had earlier. Apparently her young nephew wasn’t the only one who needed a distraction. The move to Pine Hollow has caused her a lot of worry. Moving is a big change in itself, but it’s also dredged up many old concerns. Right now though, her only worry is amusing her young nephew.

Since Braden enjoys being chased more than being it, she doesn’t try too hard to actually catch him. He enjoys every minute of it, laughing every time she misses him and squealing whenever she almost tags him.

Eventually, he hides behind a tree. She looks around as if she doesn’t know where he went, walking right past the tree. Braden giggles, but she acts like she didn’t hear him. After a minute she turns back around, feigning surprise when she sees him.

“Aha! I found you!” Bea doesn’t immediately give chase, waiting a few minutes before she runs after him. She’s so focused, she doesn’t immediately realize that she can feel another person nearby, especially since nothing about their presence feels threatening.

With a shriek, Braden runs past another tree, back to the playground. Laughing, Bea chases after him. Or, well, she tries to. She catches sight of a tall, blonde girl just as she barrels into her. Bea couldn’t see her through the trees. As they hit the ground, she hears a soft oof.

It takes a minute for Bea to orient herself, the collision knocking the breath out of her. The poor girl she ran into is probably worse off, since the other girl took the brunt of the fall. After she catches her breath, Bea apologizes. “I’m so sorry! Are you okay?”

“Ha ha, yeah.”

Bea stiffens. That is **not** a girl’s voice. The body underneath her is definitely **not** a girls. Oh no. No no no. She slowly raises her head to look at the person she fell on, her face a bright red. No wonder she though he was a girl at first; he has one of the prettiest faces she’s ever seen.

He speaks again, his voice concerned. “Are you okay?”

At the sound of his voice, she starts. At the realization of the position they’re in, her face flushes even more. Bea rolls off him, covering her face. She can feel her face burning up and it only embarrasses her further. The whole situation is foreign to her. She’s never found herself in this position before, she doesn’t know how to react. It’s not like she goes around running into people. In fact, she’s pretty good at avoiding people in general.

“I’m so sorry!” Bea apologizes again, her voice slightly muffled by her hands.

“Auntie!” Braden runs up to where she’s laying, prying her hands off her face. It was only a matter of time before he realized she wasn’t chasing him anymore. “Are you okay? Why are you so red?”

A soft whine escapes Bea’s throat. She knows Braden is only trying to help, but he’s only making it worse. Mortification overrides her normal composure, so it takes her a bit to calm down. This is not how she would prefer to meet new people. Though truthfully she doesn’t really want to meet new people unless she has no choice and even then, she prefers to leave a quiet, easily forgotten impression. She’s pretty sure this won’t be easily forgotten.


	3. Corvin Meets Bea & Braden

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the first chapter in Corvin's perspective. I apologize once again if he seems out of character.

Corvin hadn’t expected to be bowled over by another person. Normally it’s the other way around. He probably should have expected it when a laughing little boy ran past him. At least the girl who knocked him over was relatively light.

He pushes himself into a sitting position and adjusts his glasses. The fall thankfully only knocked them askew. He’s torn between amusement and concern as he watches the dark-haired little boy fuss over the girl on the ground. Neither one of them seems familiar and he's knows most of the people in Pine Hollow.

Even without the little boy’s helpful commentary, it was obvious the girl was mortified by what happened. She’s still lying flat on the ground, the little boy awkwardly holding her hands. He can practically feel her embarrassment. Part of him feels bad, but her reaction is adorable.

Given the uneasy look the little boy gives him, he can tell the little boy doesn’t know how to feel about him. When he smiles reassuringly at the little boy, he’s rewarded with a distrustful glare.

“What did you do?!” The little boy accuses, hovering protectively around the girl. He can’t decide whether to keep his eyes on Corvin or the girl on the ground. Clearly they have a close relationship, it’s sweet and speaks well of their relationship.

“Nothing!” Corvin answers, hands held up defensively. Not that the little boy could really do much to him, well other than make him smile. He’s pretty sure his amusement wouldn’t be well received.

Before the little boy can say anything else, the girl finally speaks again. She softly squeezes his hands before pulling out of the little boy’s grip.  “I’m fine, Braden. If anything, it was my fault. So be nice.”

The little boy, Braden, relaxes. Corvin smiles at him again, but the little boy glowers back at him. Clearly Braden doesn’t trust him, despite her reassurance.

The girl sits up, an apologetic smile on her face. Her face is still slightly red. “I’m sorry…again. My nephew can be protective at times.”

Corvin gets a good look at her, now that she’s no longer lying on the ground with her face partially covered. She’s about his age, if he had to guess. Long, strawberry blonde hair is braided behind her back, a few short strands framing her round face. Her facial features are delicate and she’s cute even without makeup. When he meets her eyes, she raises one eyebrow. He unashamedly grins at her, not the least bit contrite at being caught staring.

“Are you done?” She wryly asks. A soft blush spreads across her cheeks even as she softly frowns at him. Corvin’s grin widens, her reaction only encouraging him.

Braden looks between them, not quite sure what’s going on.

“It’s not often a pretty girl runs into me. Usually it’s the other way around.” Corvin teases, winking at her. Her eyes widen in response, her expression unbelieving for a split second.

Then she glares at him, even as a blush spreads across her cheeks. Deliberately she starts smoothing out her oversized sweater, purposely not looking at him. Her nephew pulls a few leaves out of her hair, holding them out to her. She smiles at him, ruffling his hair. It’s clear she’s hoping Corvin will take the hint and leave.

As much as he would enjoy pestering her some more, he has things needing his attention more. Corvin stands up smoothly, drawing her attention. He offers a hand to the strawberry-blonde sitting on the ground. For a moment he wonders if she’ll accept his help, her eyes carefully assessing him. He does his best to seem harmless, which truthfully isn’t too hard.

Just as he’s about to pull his hand back, her small hand slips into his. He easily pulls her up, slightly amused the top of her head barely reaches his chin. She’s adorably tiny. Truthfully, everything about her is kind of cute.

She looks up at him, her eyes meeting his. Her blue-gray eyes remind him of the sky on a stormy day, which seems appropriate somehow. One eyebrow is raised again, as if daring him to say something.

“Auntie, can we go home? You promised remember?” Her nephew whines, interrupting before Corvin can make a flippant remark. The little boy tugs on his aunt’s sweater, making her look down.

She takes a few steps away from Corvin, her hand slipping out of his. Her other hand moves toward her face, a finger tapping against her lips. Her head tilts to the side, as if in thought. “I did, didn’t I? What was it again? Brownies?”

“Noooo! Cookies!” Braden eagerly corrects, shaking his head vigorously.

Corvin watches the exchange with an amused expression. He’s pretty sure she knows exactly what she promised her nephew. She’s just using it as an excuse to try and ignore him again. He’s used to people seeking his attention, not attempting to ignore him until he gets the hint. Unfortunately for her, he won’t leave just because she wants him to.

“That’s right! I remember now. Double chocolate peanut butter cookies.” Nodding, she holds her hand out to Braden. “We should get going if I’m going to make those cookies tonight.”

“Okay!” Her nephew grabs her hand, trying to drag her out of the park.

She laughs softly, her face lighting up. When she’s interacting with her nephew, she’s much more relaxed. Something tells Corvin not many people see that side of her and it makes him sad. He knows what it’s like to hide part of yourself from others.

Suddenly she focuses back on him, her expression slightly troubled. Her eyes briefly meet with his before she looks away again. “We should really be getting home. I’m really sorry for running into you like that.”

Without waiting for him to respond, she turns around and walks away. The dark haired little boy swings their joined hands as he walks next to her. Neither one of them look back.

It occurs to him she never gave him her name and she didn’t ask for his either. He’ll find out eventually, regardless of if he ever meets her again or not. It’s his family’s business to know what’s going on in Pine Hollow after all.

He watches them walk away for a few moments more before he sighs. The Orai he was chasing is probably long gone. Even so, he should probably get going as well. With Samhain so close, there’s no shortage of things needing his attention.


	4. The Aftereffects of Bea's Park Misadventure

The walk back to their house is quiet, but in a different way from their walk to the park. Instead of being subdued, Braden excitedly swings their joined hands. Bea is pleased she managed to cheer him up and help him forget about his nightmare. She doesn’t have to worry about him wandering off either since Braden is intent on getting home. He really does love those cookies. Maybe it’s the combination of peanut butter and chocolate.

Whatever the reason, she’s free to think about the events of earlier without worry.

She’s not so sure how she feels about the guy she ran into. Without meaning to, she drew attention to herself and she’s not comfortable about it. The worst part is she has no one to blame but herself. Just thinking about it makes her face heat up again.

She still can’t believe she ran into him and knocked him onto the ground like that. Normally she would have realized he was there before something happened. At least he’d been good natured about everything. He didn’t get mad she had knocked him over and he’d been amused by Braden’s accusation, even if he didn’t show it. When Braden pulled her attention away, he’d still been amused. He wasn’t irritated Braden interrupted his attempts to flirt.

She thinks he was trying to flirt.

He wasn’t very good at it. Did he even know how he sounded?

Maybe he was just teasing her?

Either way, she isn’t used to it. The only person who teases her is Elle.

No one has really flirted with her before either. There probably were some who would’ve tried, had they been able to find her. She was very good at keeping to herself when she chose to, which was practically always. It was hard enough keeping secrets from Elle, so Bea kept her distance from people for the most part. No one really made it past acquaintance, even if they wanted to.

Luckily her last school had been huge. It had been easy to find rooms to hide in and to get lost within the throng of her fellow students. Most people gave up trying to find her after a certain point, tired of the search.

She didn’t think she piqued his interest for him to try and chase her down. Though…she wasn’t sure why he was so sad for a moment before she and Braden walked away. His face didn’t give anything away, but she knew what sadness felt like. What made him sad?

* * *

 

When they get home, Bea heads directly for the kitchen. She hadn’t been lying about the cookies. Braden wasn’t allowed to eat past a certain time and she would already be cutting it close.

“You’re back just in time for dinner.” Elle smiles at them, wiping her hands on a towel.

“What did you make?” Bea asks, briskly walking over to the shelf holding a large selection of cookbooks. Within minutes she’s found the cookbook holding the recipe for the cookies she promised. She knows they have the ingredients since Elle went shopping early in the morning.

“Nothing too elaborate. Just spaghetti and salad.” Elle watches her younger sister move about the kitchen, gathering ingredients for something. “What are you making?”

“I promised Braden cookies.” Bea answers without stopping, starting to measure out ingredients.

Elle places her hand over the cookbook with a frown. “I’ll make the cookies. You and Braden should eat dinner.”

“But-“

“No buts. I’ll make the cookies and you’ll eat dinner.” Elle sternly frowns at her, shaking her head. “I know you, you’ll get caught up making cookies. You’ll get distracted by something else, skip dinner, and then get hungry later. Then you’ll grab some unhealthy snack or something. So no. You’re going to eat dinner and I’ll make the cookies.”

Bea hesitates, but the stern look on Elle’s face brooks no argument. With a sigh, Bea capitulates. She taps a page in the cook book before preparing to serve dinner. “It’s the double chocolate peanut butter cookie recipe.”

Elle looks over the recipe. “Didn’t you make this last time?”

Bea nods her head, a slight smile on her face. She speaks just low enough for Elle to hear. “Braden required a little persuading to actually play a little bit. I remembered he really likes this recipe.”

Elle nods, a little surprised. She knows her son usually doesn’t require much prodding to play and explore.

“So, how was the park?”

As Elle waits for an answer, she takes a look at the recipe. It’s not a difficult recipe thankfully, so Bea knows it won't be too hard for her sister.

“It’s a nice park, though no other kids were there. Braden and I played tag.” Bea answers as she places two plates of spaghetti on the bar. She pulls out the Italian dressing for the salad before she sits next to Braden at the bar. Braden is already digging in, hungry from all the running around.

“Auntie knocked someone over!” Braden pipes up between a bite of spaghetti. He happily keeps eating, unaware of the effect of his words. A look of dismay forms on Bea’s face. She hadn’t intended on mentioning it, knowing full well what would happen.

“What!” Elle looks up from mixing the batter, her eyes wide. “Who?”

“Some guy who walked in front of me while I was chasing Braden. Not a big deal, no one was hurt or anything.” Bea shrugs, hopeful her sister will accept her answer without any more questioning. She knows it’s a futile wish.

“Was he cute?” Elle eagerly asks. Bea’s not surprised, Elle has this weird idea that a boyfriend will be good for her. She’s not really sure a boyfriend is what she needs. She could use a friend, someone other than her big sister. A boyfriend, no.

“Elle, shouldn’t you focus on making the cookies?” Bea takes a bite of her salad before speaking again. “I wouldn’t call him cute. He’s pretty…like a girl.”

“Bea! Saying things like that isn’t nice!” Elle reprimands, surprised at her sister’s response. As she speaks, she rolls out the cookie batter into balls.

“But it’s true? I mean, I thought I ran into a girl at first. But fine, I won’t say it again.” Bea sighs before taking another bite of her salad. When Elle says nothing else, Bea focuses on eating her dinner.

“What did he look like?” Elle asks after a bit, not quite ready to let the topic go.

“Wavy, shoulder length pale blonde hair, several inches taller than me, really pretty green eyes. He was pretty good natured about everything. Not much else to say.” Bea waves her free hand, not sure what else to say. She’s not going to mention his teasing, flirting, or whatever that was. The last thing she needs is her sister trying to play matchmaker. It wouldn’t be the first time.

“Did you just say he has pretty eyes?” Elle blinks owlishly at her before a grin spreads across her face. Bea doesn’t like that grin. That grin spells trouble.

“What?” Bea blinks back at her, unsure of why it matters. “I guess I did. Does it matter?”

“Maybe...What’s his name?” Elle stops what she’s doing, watching Bea instead.

“Um…I don’t know?” Bea bites her bottom lip, preparing for Elle’s rant. The rest of dinner Bea spends idly listening to her sister scold her about manners. She nods at the appropriate places and feigns remorse when prompted.

It doesn’t bug her she doesn’t know who he is. Either Bea will meet him again or she won’t. Even if they do meet again, she’s doubtful anything will come of it. She doesn’t let people in easily and very few people have the persistence to keep trying. He is probably no different.


	5. Bea (Un)Fortunately Meets That Guy Again

The car ride to school early Monday morning was quiet. Braden was asleep in his car seat and he would be dropped off at daycare. Supposedly the daycare came highly recommended, suggested by some of Elle’s old friends. Since Elle would be working most of the day and Bea would be at school, daycare was a necessity. When they lived in the city, Elle worked afternoons and late nights. They couldn’t really afford daycare, so Bea spent most of her free time babysitting Braden.

Bea didn’t mind. It gave her a valid excuse to stay home. The moment Braden figured out how to move, he was getting into anything and everything. It was a full time job keeping an eye on him and making sure he didn’t stuff things up his nose or something. Pain wasn’t much of a deterrent either. Because of Braden, Bea was fairly proficient at first aid. Thankfully he is easier to deal with now he was almost three years old. While daycare will be a new experience, she has no doubts her nephew will easily adjust.

Unlike her. Change has never been in Bea’s favor. Sure, the move to Pine Hollow was a sound choice. Lower cost of living. Elle will be working the job she’s always wanted and she has old friends here. Bea’s free time will be hers to spend as she chose. A totally new start at a new school, far away from her old one. She should be thrilled. Instead she was filled with dread.

It’s ridiculous. She knows it’s ridiculous. They moved because it was a good idea, not because of family tragedy. Even so, part of her fears how her first day will play out.

Enough. Worrying over it changes nothing. Bea closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. Afterwards she makes her way across the courtyard, toward the entrance to the school. She was told to stop by the administrative office and pick up her schedule. If the last seven years have taught her anything, it’s that sometimes all she can do is keep moving forward and hope for the best.

* * *

 

Bea steps into the hallway after her first class, which was blissfully uneventful. The hallway is full of students, some trying to get to their next class and some stopping to chat with each other. Her last school had far more students than Stone Circle Academy, so she’s an old hand at making her way through a crowd this size. She deftly weaves her way around the other students in the hallway, pausing in an open spot to check what class she has next. There’s a commotion down the hall, but she ignores it.

Something knocking into her foot catches her attention. Absentmindedly, she tucks her class schedule into a pocket before she looks down.

It’s a book. A really creepy looking book. It even feels creepy. The cover is black with a weird purple eye with matching bat wings. A few purple ribbons stick out at the bottom. Some sort of rope or twine is looped around it, even though there’s a clasp already keeping it shut. It’s like someone wanted to make sure the book wouldn’t open. What kind of book is this?

She kneels down. Her hand hovers briefly over it, but she makes no move to pick it up. Logically, she knows it’s just a book; a really creepy book, but still just a book. Someone will probably be looking for it and they may not realize where they dropped it. The right thing to do would be to take it to the office. With an unhappy sigh, she scoops the book up.

As she stands back up, she registers someone barreling towards her. Not just someone, the guy from yesterday. His eyes widen as he sees her, but she’s pretty sure he won’t be able to stop himself from running into her.

Instinctively she takes a step backwards, the book clutched to her chest. The wall of lockers don’t let her get far. When her back hits the lockers, she ducks her head and closes her eyes, bracing for impact.  Instead of being painfully crushed against the lockers, she hears palms slamming near her head. Surprised, she looks up to see his relieved face above her. He thankfully managed to keep from squashing her against the lockers, but that means she’s pinned between him and the lockers instead.

She clears her throat, looking away. After a few seconds, she carefully angles her face so she can still see him. Her face feels like it’s on fire from blushing so hard. He’s making her nervous with how close he is. So far every interaction with him has left her blushing and flustered, not exactly something she’s used to. This better not become a thing. “Ah…do you think you could back up a little? I mean, I’m happy you didn’t crush me into a locker, but…”

“Sorry! Sorry! I didn’t see you. Ha ha, I guess this makes us even.” He backs up a few steps with a sheepish smile. His left hand plays absentmindedly with his blue scarf as he studies her. When he catches sight of the book clasped against her chest, his eyes widen. The surprise she feels off him makes her meet his eyes, only to find him staring straight back at her. Bea quickly looks away, somehow even more uncomfortable than before.

She holds the book out to him with a stilted smile, her eyes not quite meeting his. Something tells her the creepy book is his. Truthfully, she’s glad to hand it off. The creepy vibe is even more palpable after touching it. “I was going to take it to the office, but something tells me it’s yours.”

“Yeah! Thanks! I must have dropped it earlier. You know, I didn’t catch your name yesterday.” He takes the book from her and shoves it into his backpack. The smile he gives her is practically blinding. Everything about him seems affable, but somethings piqued his attention. She’s not even sure why either. She hates attention.

“It never came up. I don’t know yours either.” Bea pushes a wayward strand of hair behind her ears. She speaks quietly, a hint of distrust in her tone. He gives no indication he’s noticed her suspicion. In fact, he smiles even wider.

“I’m Corvin.” He smiles at her. “And you are?”

She tilts her head to the side with a frown. Courtesy demands that she answer, but she’s not feeling very considerate right now. Every instinct calls for her to distance herself from him. Instead of answering, she moves to slip by him. Hopefully he’ll let her go.

He doesn’t. Moving in front of her, he gives her a soft frown. “Am I that scary? I think you’re the only person to find me scary.”

Sighing, she shakes her head. She looks up at him, her eyes meeting his. “No...I just…don’t like attention. And we should really get to class.”

Keeping her eyes on him, she moves to pull out her schedule. If she’s going to have to talk to him, she may as well ask him for directions. He snatches the paper out of her hand the minute she pulls it out.

“Hey! You could at least ask first!” Bea cries as she makes a grab for it. Corvin dances away from her with a teasing smile as he reads it. Not that it’s hard to keep it out of her reach; he has at least several inches on her.

“Beatrice! What a pretty name!” A triumphant smile is on his face for finding out her name. He’s extremely pleased with himself, even though she was going to tell him her name before he rudely plucked the paper away from her. Even so, she finds it hard to be mad at his behavior. It’s funny how happy he is just for finding her name, ridiculously so.

An amused smile starts to spread across her face, though she does her best to smother it before he notices. She really doesn’t need to encourage him. Given how he’s grinning at her, he saw it. Usually she’s really good at acting nonchalant, even when a blush is forming on her face. Between Corvin and the stress of the move, she’s off her game.

The bell signaling the start of second period rings. No more playing around, she needs to get to her next class. While the teacher will probably forgive her since it’s her first day, she hates being late to class. Plus she doesn’t know if she’s ahead or behind in what the teacher’s gone over so far and she wants to catch up with everyone else as soon as possible.

She extends out a hand with a determined look. “I prefer Bea. Now would you please give me back my schedule? I’d like to get to second period before it’s over.”

Corvin grins as he hands it back to her. “Good news! You’re in my second period! I can take you there!”

It’s an effort to keep the small frown from forming on her face. That means he’s probably a senior too. She really hoped they wouldn’t see much of each other. Since this is her senior year, she plans on keeping to herself. It’s best for everyone that way. Even so, she replies as politely as possible. “I would appreciate it.”

Corvin pouts at her. “Would you really? You don’t seem very happy about it.”

Bea grabs his wrist and pulls him down the hallway, hoping she’s moving in the right direction. She has a feeling if she doesn’t get him moving, they’ll be there all day. Corvin seems like he’s kind of an airhead. “I don’t really know you enough to like you or not. Anyway, we really need to get moving to our next class, no? So let’s go!”

“Right! This way!” He pulls ahead of her and grabs the hand around his wrist. Bea’s glad that he doesn’t look back at her; her blush has returned in full force. She tries to reclaim her hand, but his grip only tightens after each effort. Unable to pull away, she lets him pull her along while trying her best to will away her reddened cheeks.

Corvin bursts into a classroom, dragging her in after him. She narrowly avoids colliding into him after he somehow manages to crash face first into a desk. Luckily there was no one sitting there, so the only one hurt is him. All he does is laugh, though she’s sure it hurt a little.

And just like that, almost every person’s attention swivels towards them. She’s acutely aware some of her new classmates are looking at her curiously. It takes effort to not just yank her hand out of his when she notices a few of her classmates eyeing their joined hands. If she did that, it would only garner more attention. Instead she gently tugs her hand out of his grip and he easily let’s go of her hand this time. A faint blush stains her cheeks, but nowhere near as noticeable as earlier. So much for her first day of school being uneventful.


	6. Corvin's Initial Thoughts

Corvin instantly knows when attention turns to them. It’s not just his spectacular entrance that clues him in; Bea stiffens up slightly before unobtrusively pulling her hand from his. Attention is something he’s used to, it’s just something he lives with. Bea, however, says she’s uncomfortable with attention and he’s inclined to believe her. He sneaks a peek at her as he rights himself, curious about her reaction.

Bea’s remarkably composed, her expression polite and open. He can see a soft blush staining her cheeks, but it’s only because he’s standing so close to her. If he hadn’t felt her tense up earlier, he isn’t sure he would have picked up on her discomfort. The girl standing in front of him barely seems like the same young woman he met yesterday.

“Would you please take a seat so I can resume class Corvin?” Mr. Faretti sighs.

Corvin simply shrugs in response while moving towards his seat. Most of the teachers are well used to him coming to class late or leaving abruptly in the middle of the lesson. On his way to his seat, he trips over a nonexistent bump on the floor, noisily falling to the floor. Most of the other students’ attention snaps back to him, like he hoped it would. Several students nearby fuss over him.

Mr. Faretti only sighs again before turning his attention to Bea. “Are you a new student? I don’t recognize you.”

“Yes, sir. Beatrice Carter. I just started today and I wasn’t sure where to go. Corvin stopped to help me.” Bea softly replies, her voice just loud enough to be heard. Her voice is steady and even, no indication of her earlier discomfort. She walks up to Mr. Faretti, walking right by Corvin without a second glance. His followers barely pay her any mind.

He doesn’t know whether to be impressed or hurt. After all, he did just fall on his face…again. This time he did it to draw attention away from her, though he’s not sure it was necessary. By saying he stopped to help the new girl, she simultaneously covered for him and placated their fellow students, particularly his followers. Rather smart of her, though he really doesn’t need her help making excuses.

The minute he’s in his seat, someone is whispering to him. “We were wondering where you went Cor. So another new girl, huh? Do you know her?”

“Just met her.” Corvin whispers back, shaking his head. Mr. Faretti scowls at them, his disapproval evident. Nobody says anything else, unwilling to test his patience further.

“Well, Beatrice, you’re free to sit in any empty seat.” The teacher returns a paper to Bea, probably her schedule.

Bea simply nods before walking towards the back, her attention on finding a seat. Somehow Corvin isn’t surprised she prefers to sit in the back; by sitting in the back, anybody trying to look at her has to turn around. That includes him as well. Sure, he can probably manage somehow, but he doesn’t want to draw attention back to her. Nor does he want her to suspect she caught his attention, though it may be too late for that.

Mr. Faretti continues his lesson, making it easy for Corvin to think about things. Since the teacher expects people to pay attention, he can get away with being quiet. He distractedly reads notes passed to him, not really needing to pay much attention to them. Most of them are the same thing, basically asking about the new girl. Questions that are easily answered: No, he doesn’t know her, she’s a new student, and he was just being helpful.

Not replying isn’t an option; if he doesn’t answer, they’ll wonder why. They don’t need to know he’s deep in thought about her, especially not before he manages to figure out how to go about dealing with her. Unlike Nora, she’s a completely new student.

She’s some sort of Cryptic; she has to be if she saw his grimoire. It’s surprising she picked it up, he knows how creepy it looks. He really needs to keep better track of it, that’s the second time he’s dropped it in a little over a week. Still, it helped him to identify Bea as a Cryptic.

Surprisingly, the grimoire and his almost squishing her against the lockers wasn’t what made her suspicious of him. She had been nervous dealing with him, but it was because she was embarrassed, if he had to guess. He’d never seen anyone turn so red before, it was cute. She was even cuter when she smiled, though she was quick to stifle it. He’d seen it though and he’d seen her relaxed on Sunday, when she was with her nephew.

He’d made a mistake examining her so closely once he realized she was holding his grimoire. His sudden interest made her uncomfortable, given how she tried to brush by him instead of introducing herself. Corvin isn’t sure how to feel about it. He didn’t mean to spook her, but trying to run off like that, yet again, isn’t really nice either. Scaring her hadn’t been his intention and he’s not sure how to rectify it. Usually people aren’t scared of him or try to avoid him, mostly due to his magic.

Somehow he’s going to have to approach her about the club. Easier said than done, if he’s reading her correctly. Simply approaching her about interviewing for the club probably isn’t going to work, especially when he mentions it’s the Paranormal Mysteries Club. In the end, he’ll probably end up dragging her into the club room, like Ally did with Nora. Preferably with less…disastrous results.

They really don’t need to cause another new club member to faint.

Maybe he should ask Ewan to steer clear for a couple days. He’s loathe to ask, not really wanting Ewan to feel more self-conscious about it. Plus he’s not even sure if he’ll be able to drag her into the club room within the next few days, though he hopes he can. Given how close Samhain is, dealing with her as soon as possible is imperative. There’s a lot of danger around this time of year and he’s not sure exactly what kind of Cryptic she is. Even if she’s only a Sensitive, it’s still dangerous.

The sound of books being closed and people moving about pulls him out of his thoughts. A quick glance at the clock tells him second period is almost over.

The bell announcing the end of second period goes off. Corvin stands up and looks towards the back row of seats, looking for Bea. Instead he catches a glimpse of her as she briskly walks out the door. He gets up and tries to follow. By the time he gets to the hallway, she’s already disappeared. She’s not going to make this easy for him, is she?


	7. The First Day Bea Evades Him

Bea arrives at school early on Tuesday morning, which is going to be a normal occurrence. Elle needs to drop Braden off at daycare before she heads into work, which starts at seven. The restaurant doesn’t open until later, but Elle says a lot of prep work needs to be done. So here she is at school at least 30 minutes before it starts.

As Bea walks towards the school entrance, she considers her options. She can go to the library and try to catch up on her reading. The only class she’s behind on is Literature, since her last school focused on different books. Thankfully she’s not too far behind on her other classes and it won’t take her long to catch up. It’s really tempting to just head to the music room and get some practice in before class.

When she walks through the door to the school, she catches sight of Corvin. He’s surrounded by a bunch of people; it didn’t take long for her to figure out he was extremely popular. Luckily his back is to her and he’s busy talking to the mob of people around him. There’s an awful lot of people for how early it is.

She ducks into a nearby empty classroom, fussing with her backpack. It gives her time to consider her options without raising anyone’s suspicions. She can’t chance walking by him. If he notices her, he’ll catch up in no time. Ignoring him when he calls out isn’t an option since the other students will notice and speculate about it. She has a feeling a fair few of his followers harbor a crush on him and she has no intention of making them think she’s a rival.

It would be one thing if she was actually interested in him, but she’s really not looking for a relationship with anyone. Bea has no intention on having a boyfriend; she has enough to deal with in her life already, like trying to avoid any unwanted attention from the paranormal.

Anyway, running past him isn’t really an option either, for the same reason. She stretches her awareness, looking to see if she can sense him out there still.

Of course, he hasn’t moved. She’s pretty certain he’s looking for her, though she’s not quite sure why. It’s possible he’s attracted to her, but he feels more curious than anything else. Sure he did some weird flirting or something on Sunday, but it didn’t take her long to realize he does that to almost everyone. She’s never seen someone spout so many compliments at once, but she knows he’s sincere about every single one. It’s weird.

Times like this, her empathy isn’t very helpful. It tells her he genuinely believes what he says, but she has no idea what compels him to compliment everyone he sees. All she knows is his behavior is bizarre, at least from her experience.

At least she can tell when he’s nearby, since every person has a distinctive aura. Now she just has to figure out how she’s going to sneak by him. No amount of racking her brain gives her an answer. She pulls up her right sleeve and checks her wristwatch. It’s later than she thought and she really needs to start making her way to her first class if she doesn’t want to be late.

Nothing else to do but hope he doesn’t notice her. When she peeks back out at the hall, she notices there’s far more students now. It’s going to make slipping by him much easier, especially given her petite stature…unless he knows she carries a violin. She’s going to operate on the idea he doesn’t know. Now all she has to do is time it right.

She doesn’t have to wait long. Several students pour through the front door, most likely just dropped off by the bus. Walking out of the classroom, she walks along the opposite wall from Corvin. With more students in the hallway, she feels good about her chances.

He doesn’t notice her immediately and she’s already turned the corner when she hears him calling her name. Luckily her first class isn’t too far, but the door is still closed. Hurriedly approaching the door, she silently prays it’ll open. A soft sigh of relief escapes her when the door opens. She swiftly enters the room and closes the door behind her, careful to stay out of sight of the door window. With any luck, he won’t notice the door closing and she’s successfully evaded him for now.

Knowing better than to linger by the door, she makes her way to her seat. When the door opens, she glances up. Once she realizes it’s not him, she looks back down with a relieved smile. Then she remembers she shares second period with him.

Okay. It’s not impossible. Maybe if she arrives just before the second period bell, she can escape without speaking to him. Leaving without him catching her will be easier. Her seat is closer to the door, so she just has to be faster than him and she doesn’t have a bunch of friends wanting to talk to her.

With a nod, she pulls out her sheet music and opens her violin case. For now, she’s going to focus on playing. Orchestra is her favorite class and she refuses to let him distract her.

* * *

 

Orchestra passes faster than she likes, but then it always does. She’s not in any rush to leave, so she takes her time putting everything away. Her violin case will stay in a room for storing students’ instruments, so she’ll just pick it up after school. She pauses at the thought, unsure if she should just store it in her locker instead.

Either way, she’ll have to stop for it, increasing the chance of Corvin tracking her down. On one hand, she’ll have to detour to the music room to pick up her instrument. On the other hand, if she stores it in her locker, she’ll have to spend time opening it.

After brief consideration, she leaves the violin in the music room. He’ll have to track her down into a particular classroom, which is better than standing in the middle of the hallway in full view of everyone.

She really hopes he’ll quickly give up, though she doubts it. It’s much harder to avoid him since the academy is much smaller than her last school. Smaller school means less students to camouflage herself in and less classrooms to search.

Once she’s done putting her instrument away, she checks the time. Just enough time to make it to second period.

Corvin’s already seated when she enters the classroom. The second period bell goes off just as she sits down and when class ends, she’s one of the first people out the door. After second period, it’s far easier to avoid running into him. They only share the one class and she easily blends with the other students without him noticing her until it’s too late. She’s already gone by the time he tries to catch up.

During lunch period, she sneaks into a classroom. She’s not one for busy lunchrooms anyway and she has a feeling he’ll find her if she goes to the library. If he was looking for her, he never got close. Though it was just as likely he couldn’t ditch his pack of followers; they were rather demanding of his attention.

Leaving school at the end of the day proves easier than she thought, hiding effortlessly among the other students on the way to the bus. As she makes her way to the bus, she smiles to herself. It wasn’t easy, but he never quite caught up to her.

* * *

 

“So how was school? Did you meet anyone new?” The moment Elle gets home, she starts questioning Bea about her day. Braden’s in the living room, playing with one of his toys.

“Elle, everyone was new to me.” Bea deadpans. She’s sitting at the bar in the kitchen, where she’s trying to catch up on her schoolwork. Elle is standing across from her, clearly eager to hear about her day.

“You know what I meant.” Elle glares at her, clearly unamused. “Did you meet any cute guys?”

“For crying out loud, that’s the first thing you want to ask about! Not ‘do you like your teachers’ or ‘how much do you have to do to catch up’.” Bea shakes her head, sighing. “I’m sorry, checking out cute guys isn’t really something on my agenda. You should know that by now.”

“Fine. You’re no fun, I hope you know that.” Elle pouts at her before suddenly perking up. “Did you meet the guy from yesterday?”

“I saw him, if that’s what you mean.” Unwilling to completely lie to her sister, Bea offers a half-truth instead. She may be able to avoid talking about what really happened if her sister asks the right question.

“So, did you introduce yourself?” Elle leans forward eagerly, a smile on her face.

“No.” Bea answers simply. Even better, it’s the truth. Corvin got her name from her class schedule, so she never actually introduced herself. It’s not that she dislikes Corvin, but she really wants Elle to forget about what happened.

Her older sister can be quite determined sometimes. Given her reaction yesterday, it would probably be for the best if Bea tries to head off whatever’s going on in her sister’s head.

“You disappoint me. I hope you know that.” A heavy sigh punctuates Elle’s words.

“Oh, how will I ever survive? Seriously, I have classwork to catch up on. Your priorities are so skewed sometimes, you know that?” Bea rolls her eyes, ignoring her sister’s theatrics. Her older sister can be such a drama queen. She returns her attention to her homework.

After a few moments, Elle starts to make dinner. As she cooks, she talks about her day. Bea listens with a smile, happy her sister is happy. Eventually Braden joins them, enthusiastically telling them about his first day at daycare.

Even better, no one mentions Corvin for the rest of the night. Now if only she can avoid him for the next few weeks until Elle completely forgets about him.

Unfortunately, she doesn’t think she can manage more than a few days.


	8. Bea's Second Day Trying to Avoid Him

Better prepared this time, Bea easily avoids Corvin Wednesday morning. It also helps she found another entrance into the school. This time she doesn’t even see him until second period.

She sits down right before second period starts. Corvin sees her come in, but the bell stops him halfway to her. When his eyes catch on hers, her lips twitch into a small smirk she quickly suppresses. Instead she opts for tilting her head, an innocent expression on her face. This is an old game for her, though she has a feeling he’ll catch her in the end. He seems more determined than most and with how small the school is, it’s only a matter of time.

Doesn’t mean she has to make it easy for him. If he wants to catch her, he’s going to have to work for it. In some ways, she enjoys the challenge. The smaller school creates makes things more difficult, she has to consider each step carefully. Even then, she’s relying heavily on luck and eventually her luck will run out.

His eyes narrow speculatively at her. After a few seconds, he pouts at her.

Well, she’s pretty sure he’s knows she’s intentionally avoiding him, if she goes by his reaction and the emotions she feels off him. He caught on faster than most. Some people never even realize she’s purposely avoiding them. Perhaps he’s not quite the airhead she thought he was.

The smirk returns to her face, wider than before. She quickly busies herself with pulling out stuff from her book bag, unable to completely smooth out her expression. Still, she doesn’t miss the smirk he gives her in return. 

A few people notice their small exchange, but most people know he’s been looking for her, since he’s called after her a few times. She’s even been approached by a few other students who ask her if she’s aware he’s looking for her. To which she responds with surprise, acting like she didn’t know and it was just bad luck he keeps missing her.

No point in trying to avoid their attention now, since she can tell some of them already have drawn their own conclusions. From what she’s picking up, a few people are unhappy she’s drawn Corvin’s attention. Well, it’s not like she went out of her way to grab his attention in the first place. Unlike most people, he hasn’t given up after the first few times he failed to catch her.

He’s almost caught her more than anyone else, even if she combines all the other close calls. He’ll catch her eventually if he keeps being persistent, so there’s no reason not to enjoy the chase while it lasts.

“Corvin, would you please sit down.” Mr. Faretti asks, clearly exasperated.

“Sure!” Corvin turns around and somehow trips on his own feet, falling into a nearby desk.

With her face angled down towards her textbook, no one notices Bea pursing her lips in thought. She’s noticed Corvin is the most accident prone person she’s ever met. Most people fuss over him, but she finds it hard to believe he’s as clumsy as he seems. There’s no reason to think otherwise, though. What would being such a huge klutz achieve?

From what she’s seen so far, people would flock to him even if he wasn’t such a klutz.

She stops thinking about it once Mr. Faretti starts talking. At least trigonometry makes sense.

* * *

Once again she’s practically out the door the minute class ends. Pausing just before she rounds the corner, she glances back down the hall. Corvin is struggling to maneuver through the crowd, but he looks up suddenly. Certain of his attention, Bea winks at him before continuing on her way.

With how busy the hallway is, she’s pretty sure no one saw it but him. Softly humming to herself, she weaves through the busy hallway as she briskly makes her way to her third class of the day.

She hides in a classroom again during lunch, though this time he comes far too close to catching her. Without her ability to sense auras, he definitely would have caught her. As is, she got lucky he didn’t investigate the class beyond a cursory glance. If he had actually searched the room, he would have found her hiding behind a shelf. She had pressed herself against the wall, thankful for her slight build.

Once she’s sure he’s gone, she has a giggle fit. The laughter is partly because of how close he was to catching her, but also because the whole thing is becoming rather silly. She’s aware of how ridiculous she must look, especially if anyone actually catches her hiding. There’s no explanation to make the situation less absurd.

Even so, she hasn’t had so much fun in a long time.

Corvin almost catches her a few times after lunch, but she narrowly gets away. Bea knows she’s victorious once again when she slides into the front seat of Elle’s car.

Today Elle is picking her up so they can spend some girl time together, or so she says. It’s far more likely she’s softening Bea up for an uncomfortable conversation, which will happen when they stop for a snack or something. Otherwise Braden would be coming with them, instead of staying at daycare.

Bea knows she should be uneasy, since Elle only does this when she has something serious to discuss. Instead, Bea’s in a good mood from managing to avoid Corvin for the second day. She doesn’t even feel bad, because she thinks he’s enjoying their little game, even if she’s exasperating him a bit.

Besides, she’s pretty sure her luck will run out soon, but it doesn’t bug her as much as she thought it would.  If Corvin’s smart, he’ll wise up to her tricks since he figured out she’s purposely evading him. Once he does, she’ll find out why he’s so intent on speaking to her.

Right now, Bea focuses on spending time with her sister. Their first stop is a clothing boutique because of course it is. No matter how many times she refuses to wear a skirt or a dress, her sister tries to convince her to buy at least a few. Elle tells her one day she’ll have someone she wants to dress up for, so it won’t hurt to have a few in her closet.

Normally, she can outlast Elle, her older sister eventually giving up on convincing her. Today, though, Elle ignores her completely and starts to look at dresses. Every so often Elle pulls out a dress and holds it up to Bea, inspecting it.

“Elle, I really don’t see a point in owning a dress. I don’t want one.” Bea touches Elle’s shoulder, trying to get her sister to listen.

“Well, I want you to have one. We’re not leaving without at least one dress. For you, not me. So you may as well help me.” Elle brusquely replies, not even stopping her search for a dress.

“But…I don’t want one.” Bea futilely repeats, knowing nothing she says will change Elle’s mind. Nothing changes her sister’s mind when she gets like this.

Elle just ignores her.

Grumbling under her breath, Bea starts looking at dresses. If she’s going to be forced to buy a dress, it’s going to be one she can see herself wearing at least. Her tastes in clothing is far different from Elle’s.

Eventually they settle on a dress, though Elle insists Bea tries it on first.

Bea can’t help but feel self-conscious. As far as dresses go, it’s relatively modest with a short sleeved top and long, loose skirt stopping just above her knees. It’s rather comfortable as well and it doesn’t feel too snug. Still, it shows more skin than she’s used to.

When she steps out of the dressing room, she fidgets under the scrutiny of Elle and the shop attendant. They both gush at how cute she looks in it, but it doesn’t comfort Bea at all. She’s back in the changing room as soon as she can, eager to return to her normal apparel.

“I’m done, Elle. You’ve successfully browbeaten me into getting a dress I don’t even want. Can we go now?” Bea gripes, glaring at her older sister. Her earlier good mood has evaporated in the time it took to find a dress and try it on.

Elle simply smiles in the face of her sister’s glare. “Sure. I completed my primary objective.”

“You’re so weird. This isn’t a battle or something.” Bea rolls her eyes as they walk up to the shop counter.

“Oh, but it is! It’s the first step of my super-secret plan to get you a boyfriend.” Elle grins widely as she pays for the dress. Bea refused to buy it, but Elle was adamant she get the dress.

“It’s not a secret if you tell me, you weirdo. Also, I don’t need a boyfriend. You don’t even have a boyfriend. Why don’t you focus on yourself first, hmm?” Bea shoots back, rolling her eyes again. Her sister has this strange notion Bea will loosen up if she gets a boyfriend. Why wouldn’t a friend work? Sometimes Elle makes no sense.

“I don’t need a boyfriend. I have you, Braden, and my job. I don’t need anything else.” Elle calmly responds, pushing the door leading out of the boutique. They start walking in the direction of their car.

“I don’t either!” Bea irritably retorts, almost shouting. She ducks her head when people look at them curiously. After taking a few deep breaths to try and dispel her frustration, she speaks again. “Elle, I don’t understand your fixation. Why does it matter?”

“It just does.”

Bea doesn’t know why she expected Elle to explain. Her older sister has her own weird ideas and they don’t always make sense. This is one of those times, though it isn’t the first time Elle’s brought it up. For crying out loud, her sister has tried playing matchmaker in the past. Each time has ended badly, but Elle refuses to let the failures discourage her.

Elle points to a café across the street. “I’ll meet you there after I put the dress in the car.”

Bea doesn’t fuss with her over it. There’s far more supernatural entities than when they first arrived and Bea’s eager to get out of the open. So far she hasn’t attracted any attention, but she doesn’t want to test her luck.

Bea focuses on her destination, ignoring everything around her. She makes it to the door when suddenly she feels a hostile, predatory gaze on her back. It takes everything she has to shove the door open and not look back, even as fear crawls up her spine.


	9. Corvin's Shift at The Murder

Immediately after school, Corvin heads for The Murder. He decides to walk, wanting the extra time to think. Once he’s at the café, he’ll be taking orders and talking to clients. While he’s working, he can’t really afford to be too distracted. Well, not any more distracted than he usually is.

So far all attempts to speak to Bea have been unsuccessful. At first he thought he was just unlucky, but he knows better now. When he saw her in Trigonometry, she definitely smirked at him. Then after class, when he was trying to catch up, she winked at him. She was far more mischievous than he gave her credit for.

While he’s frustrated he hasn’t managed to catch her, part of him is amused. He’s enjoying the chase, funnily enough. Most people flock to him, seeking him out without knowing why. Bea’s actively avoiding him and clearly it’s not the first time she’s played this game.

That’s what it is at this point: A game. She’s clearly daring him to catch her, like she knows it’s only a matter of time. Every time he got close after second period, she’d playfully smile back at him while slipping out of reach. He’s pretty sure he heard her laughing at one point. He would find it more aggravating if he didn’t find it so adorable.

Even so, he really wants to talk to her before Samhain. Pine Hollow is dangerous this time of year and he wants to make sure she understands. She’s been incredibly lucky so far, but luck only goes so far.

He was sure he had finally caught her during lunch. Someone mentioned they saw her enter one of the classrooms, so he made an excuse to get away. Unfortunately someone stopped him before he entered the classroom. A cursory glance told him it was empty, but he doesn’t put her above hiding. She’s not going to make it easy for him.

Hopefully he’ll be luckier tomorrow. He briefly considers asking the other club members for help, but he feels like that would be unfair. It would definitely make things easier, since he doubts she’ll be able to evade all of them. Then again, he’s not so sure. She seems pretty adept at evading people.

He reluctantly decides he’ll ask for help if he doesn’t manage to catch her tomorrow. As fun as the chase has been, her safety is far more important.

* * *

Corvin’s barely into his shift when the café’s front door forcefully swings open. It almost hits him as he walks away from a customer’s table, causing him to turn around in surprise. He barely has time to register who it is before she runs straight into him. At least this time she doesn’t knock them both over.

After spending the last two days trying to catch Bea, she just stumbles right into his arms. His amusement at the sudden turn of events doesn’t last long though. Just as he’s about to tease her about it, he gets a good look at her. Amusement quickly changes into concern at the fear rolling off her.

She’s clinging to him, shaking slightly. Her eyes are focused firmly in front of her, but she doesn’t seem to actually see him. Something has clearly scared her, but she’s pulling away before he can ask about it.

After putting some space between them, she looks up at him with a smile. It doesn’t quite meet her eyes. “I’m sorry. It’s becoming a habit, isn’t it?”

“I don’t mind.” He winks at her, hoping to put her at ease. His expression turns serious a few seconds later. “Are you okay?”

There’s a slight hesitation before she answers him. “Yeah, I think so.”

Her answer doesn’t reassure him. It’s not a definite answer, suggesting she’s not sure herself. He can’t even begin to pinpoint what frightened her, especially at this time of year. There’s too many possibilities and he’s not sure just how much she knows about Cryptic society. The café isn’t really the place to ask her about it since he’s not sure how she’ll react.

Before he can say anything else, Merle calls out to him. “Everything alright over there?”

Corvin glances back at his brother. “Yeah!”

“Then stop socializing and get back to work.”

Bea looks at him in surprise. “You work here?”

“What, the uniform doesn’t give it away?”

A soft laugh is her response, followed by an amused smile. Her earlier fear appears to be gone, though he’s not certain it actually is. The last few days have taught him she’s a very good actor when she wants to be.

“Corvin!” Merle warningly calls out.

“I should get back to work. Sit wherever you’d like.” Hopefully he’ll be able to talk to her again soon. He’s not entirely certain if he’s finally won their little game and it doesn’t feel like the right time to ask her. As he’s about to walk away, Bea puts a hand on his arm. Startled, he looks at her.

“Thanks Corvin.” The way she’s looking up at him throws him off. Her expression is incredibly sincere and there’s a softness he’s only seen once before. Only this time it’s directed at him and he’s not sure why. He doesn’t think he’s done anything to deserve it.

While he’s standing there, stupefied by her sudden thanks, she gently pats his arm before walking away from him. By the time his brain catches up, she’s already sitting down. Merle smirks at him as he walks up to the front counter.

“So, who’s the girl?”

“That would be Bea.” Corvin absentmindedly answers, still trying to understand what just happened. He’s told Merle a little about her, mainly about Bea being a new student and a possible Cryptic. Most of his free time has been spread between his duties and trying to talk to Bea.

Merle looks between Corvin and Bea, clearly thinking something over. He grabs a few menus.  “Why don’t you watch the register for a bit? I think I should officially meet Bea.”

It takes a few seconds for Merle’s words to sink in, prompting him to give chase. “Hey!”

“You’re going to be in for it if you leave the register unattended.” Kaya sternly admonishes him while walking by with a customer’s order, stopping him in his tracks. Corvin retreats back to the register, staring at Merle’s back.

Merle doesn’t look back at him, though Bea briefly looks up from her phone. She’s sitting in a corner booth, as far from the front door and register as she can get. As a result, Corvin can only watch them, unable to hear the soft conversation. All he can see is her reactions since she took the seat against the wall.

By the time Merle reaches her table, she’s already tucked her phone away. She greets Merle with a polite smile, briefly hesitating before shaking his extended hand. A few seconds later, she glances between Corvin and Merle, her expression hard to read. Still, the bright red blush on her face helps narrow down possible conversations. A few minutes later she shakes her head, motioning at the door she stumbled through earlier.

The door swings open right as Bea’s hands return to her lap. A petite, dark-haired woman walks through, clearly searching for someone. When her gaze catches on Bea, the woman walks over with a wide grin. Unlike Bea, she’s quick to shake Merle’s hand before sitting down across from Bea. Merle hands them both a menu before returning to the front counter.

“I thought I was in charge of the menus today?” Corvin pouts at Merle.

Merle only grins back at him, moving around the counter to once again man the register. “I was curious about the girl who caught your attention. You weren’t very helpful.”

“And?”

“I wouldn’t have pegged her as your type. She’s rather quiet.”

Corvin’s about to correct Merle when a customer walks up to the register. His primary interest in Bea is getting her into the club, which she’s making rather difficult. He decides to check if Bea’s table is ready to order. By the time he’s close enough to hear them talking, their conversation tapers off. The other woman gets up, walking towards the bathroom.

“Are you ready to order?” He brightly smiles at Bea. She politely smiles back.

“Chamomile tea for me. Elle wanted an Americano and a sandwich.” There’s a pause, like she wants to say something else. She looks at him, clearly thinking something over. The other woman sits down before Bea makes a decision.

“I’m not interrupting anything, am I?” The other woman teases, a smirk on her face.

Bea rolls her eyes, clearly unamused. “Meet my sister, Elle.”

“Hi! I’m Corvin!” Corvin grins at Elle. Now he knows why she looked familiar, she looks a lot like Bea’s nephew. She must be his mother.

Elle looks him over, her eyes lighting up. “Say, Corvin, you wouldn’t be the guy Bea ran over the other day?”

“Ha, ha! That’s me! How’d you know?”

“Bea gave me a description. She’s right, you are pretty.” An impish smile accompanies her words, leaving no doubt her words were deliberate.

Corvin looks at Bea, one eyebrow raised. Her face has turned bright red, prompting him to tease her. “Is that so? You’re pretty cute yourself.”

Bea avoids looking at him, glaring murderously at her sister. Her voice is a low hiss, barely audible. “Have I told you I hate you lately? Because I do.”

Elle loudly laughs, the sound echoing in the small café. “You know you love me.”

“Only because someone has to.” Bea mutters, looking away from them. She focuses on her hands, taking a deep breath. When she speaks again, she’s a little calmer. Still, she doesn’t look at him. “We should let you get back to work.”

Corvin raises an eyebrow, “Trying to get rid of me?”

“Aren’t you working? Or are you paid to chit-chat?” Bea finally meets his eyes, an annoyed expression on her face. Her earlier blush has started to fade. “Or do you enjoy being yelled at?”

“Depends on who’s yelling.” He smirks at her, delighted when her face flushes again.

Corvin can see Elle’s wide grin out of the corner of his eye but he watches Bea. As on Sunday, her eyes widen incredulously. Apparently she wasn’t expecting his response. She abruptly gets up and stalks towards the bathroom.

“I think you broke her.” Elle quips, unconcerned at her sister’s reaction. “Though you probably should get back to work.”

He looks over at Merle, who looks amused. It’s a little surprising he hasn’t been yelled at by now, but she’s right: he should get back to work. He’ll find some other time to tease Bea. “Right! Your order will be out soon!”

It occurs to him he may have just made a mistake. Maybe he should have taken the chance to bring up the club instead of teasing Bea. While he could still bring it up, he thinks Bea will refuse at this point. At this rate he’ll either manage to drag her into the club or have to recruit the others to help. His main focus should be getting her into the club. Then he can tease her all he wants. He can’t help it, she’s adorable when she’s not hiding behind a polite smile.


End file.
